Yellowstone Bison Join Wyoming’s Wind River Herd

CASPER, Wyo. (AP) — Five genetically pure Yellowstone National Park bison have been delivered to Wyoming's Wind River Indian Reservation.

The Casper Star-Tribune reports the bison joined the Eastern Shoshone Tribe's growing herd on about 300 acres near Morton on Wednesday night. The new herd members were supposed to arrive this spring and then last Sunday, but poor weather postponed the previously scheduled releases.

The bison were trucked to Wyoming from Montana's Fort Peck Indian Reservation, marking the first tribe-to-tribe transfer as part of the National Wildlife Federation's Tribal Partnerships Program. The Wyoming herd now includes 33 genetically pure bison.

Jason Baldes, the Eastern Shoshone's buffalo representative, says "most native people know how important this animal was" and "we have to relearn how to incorporate this animal back into our lives."